Thursday, 5/22/97 President-elect intends to continue, improve
programs Mosley plans to increase communication, expand general
outreach
By Stefanie Wong Daily Bruin Staff Although she never thought
she’d win, Students First! member Kandea Mosley will take the over
the helm this summer as the Undergraduate Students Association
Council (USAC) 1997-1998 president. While the pattern of two-year
turnovers for the student government should have placed an
alternate party in power, Mosley’s win two weeks ago and a Students
First! slate-wide victory showed that those patterns can be
ignored. "(Students First!) organized really hard and came out
strong. We didn’t want to be limited or hindered by the past,"
Mosley said. "You go through different periods of tremendous
confidence and tremendous self-doubt," Mosley added. "You don’t
know what’s really going to happen because you understand that it’s
ultimately up to the voters." Since she arrived at UCLA two years
ago, Mosley had been involved with community service and political
activist organizations. She began her rise to the presidency as a
tutor for the African Education Project last year, moving on to the
African Student Union and then working as the University of
California Student Association (UCSA) regional coordinator on the
anti-Proposition 209 campaign earlier this year. Though Mosley’s
candidacy under Students First! was a collective choice made by the
slate, her decision to run was also based on the responsibility she
felt towards helping her fellow students. "The reason why I felt
motivated to run for president is because I was part of a team that
traditionally has had very revolutionary ideas when you talk about
student government," Mosley said. As a Students First! member,
Mosley plans to continue with many of the programs and campaigns
already established by the current Students First!-dominated
student government. But during her administration, Mosley would
like to expand on outreach and programming ideas and also add some
new issues. "As students, we need to be strong and developing and
(ensure) that there’s a student government that’s accountable and
working on issues that’s affecting student life on all levels,"
Mosley said, "whether it be basic campus safety issues – which are
very important – or larger issues like privatization (at UCLA) and
state spending on prisons vs. education." Continuing the work on
the diversity requirement is also a priority on Mosley’s agenda for
next year. "I think that’s something that affects a lot of us here
at UCLA in terms of bridging the gaps between communities and
people not understanding the different cultures and history," she
said. There are many programs that Mosley wants to work on through
her own office and would also like to see addressed by other
members of the council. Some of these programs include creating a
USAC internship program from her own office, continuing the Campus
Interaction Forum through the internal vice president and expanding
the women’s self-defense course through the general representatives
office. "There are a lot of different areas that we believe are
important and that’s why we have the slate that we do," Mosley
said. "We’re really happy and excited to have so many qualified
people who want to target all these issues that concern students."
However, critics are concerned that Mosley will not address as wide
a range of issues as she says. There are also fears that USAC will
only work towards the needs of their constituents and supporters.
"I’m very proud of Kandea … she has the potential to really be a
visionary and someone who can change UCLA politics," said Access
Coalition presidential candidate Ben Hofilena. "My greatest fear
and concern is that I hope that president-elect Mosley is really
able to go beyond her party affiliation with Students First! and go
out of her way to be inclusive and outreach to students," Hofilena
added. To that end, Mosley contends that the work of Students
First! over the past two years and her plans for next year have not
been exclusionary of any groups and are relevant to all students on
campus. "The way we structure our work is so that attention is paid
to practical everyday needs of students as well as larger issues
that affect students after they graduate," she said. Mosley cited
this year’s work on meal coupons and vouchers, and the slate’s
planned work on campus safety as examples that involve all
students. She also believes that some students may not be aware of
what Students First! has done because not every issue receives a
lot of attention. "When you’re working on practical everyday issues
a lot of stuff is behind the scenes with meetings and paper work,"
Mosley said. "It’s not always as high profile as some larger issues
like affirmative action." "If you even just read the literature
that we were passing out on Bruin Walk, (students would know) all
the victories that we’ve had and the gamut of issues that we’ve
worked on," she added. JUSTIN WARREN/Daily Bruin President-elect
Kandea Mosley plans to expand student programs. Related links: USAC
home page